Yictoe michaelis



(No Model.)

v. MIGHAELIS. PROCESS OF MANUFACTURING VINEGAR.

,125. Patented Jan. 15, 1884.

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WITNES SESy ATTORNE umo w, wmamm n. c

'Unrrn I VICTOR MIOHAFLIS, OF LUXEMBURG, GERMANY.

PROCESS OF MANUFACTURING VINEGAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 292,125, dated January 15, 1884. Application filed July 27, 1882. (No model.) Patented in France September 26, 1878, No. 126,556; in Belgium January 28, 1879, No.

47,255; in Germany February 11, 1879, No. 6,620; and October 16, 1879, No. 9,231; in Lnxembnrg February 15, 1879, No. 2; in Italy June 30, 1879, No. 93; in Spain August I, 1879, and in England October 6, 1879, No. 4,038. 4

To all whom it may cOncePn:

Be it known that I, VIoToR MIoHAiiLIs, a citizen of the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg, residing at Luxemburg, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in the Art October 16, 187 9; in Italy by Letters Patent No. 98, dated J une 30, 187 9 5 in Spain by Let ters Patent without number, dated August 1, 1879, and in England by Letters Patent N 0. 4,088, dated October 6, 1879;) and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

This invention has reference to an improved method of manufacturing vinegar, by which a more speedy acetification of the material or liquor is obtained with considerably less loss of alcohol or aldehyde by evaporation than in the methods heretofore in use.

The invention consists in the gradual acetification of a certain quantity of liquor by the following series of steps: first, saturating the acetifying or fermenting material with the liquor to be acetified; secondly, removing the saturated acetifying material from the main body of liquor to be acetified; thirdly, permitting the saturated acetifying material to be oxidized for a period of about three hours by a natural continuous slow current of air passing diagonally upward from end to end through the unsubmerged mass of acetify'ing material; fourthly, passing the acetifying material quickly through the liquor to be acetified, and periodically repeating the steps described until the whole charge of liquor is acetified.

In the accompanying drawings one form of apparatus is shown by which my improved process of manufacturing vinegar is carried into effect, and in which Figure 1 represents an end elevation; Fig. 2, aside elevation; Fig. 3, a vertical longitudinal section of the generator, and Fig. 4 is a detail view of the air-distributing chamber arranged back of the airinlet opening for distributing the air to the acetifying material.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

In the acetification of liquors by means of fermenting or aeetifying material, it is essen tial to make the process a rapid and economical one, and to reduce the loss of alcohol or aldehyde caused by evaporation to as low a percentage as possible. For this purpose I employ a simple form of apparatus or generator, which is filled with beech-wood shavings or other like fermenting or acetifying material, and after the generator is thus filled with such material the liquor to be acetified is charged therein preferably to a level somewhat below the center line of the generator. The generator is provided above the level of the liquor to be acetified with an air-inlet orifice and at a point diagonally opposite the inlet-orifice, at or near the highest part of the generator, with an air-outlet orifice for the admission and discharge of the atmospheric air. The

apparatus is then once rolled or rotated around 7 5 its axis after the orifices are closed, so that the shavings in thejupper part of the generator are brought into contact with and are saturated by the liquor in the lower part of the generator. The operation of rolling the generator may be accomplished by any suitable means.

By the full rotation of the apparatus around .its axis, the upper portion of the shavings is passed through the liquor and returned to its normal position,while the liquor not absorbed by the shavings flows back into the lower part of the apparatus below the air-inlet orifice, so that the body of acetifying material above the level of the liquor is capable, under the influence of the atmospheric air, of effecting fermentation and acetification. By the setting in of the fermentation the temperature in the upper part of the generator is increased, and consequently a natural and continuous current of air :is established through the shavings,

which causes the air to be drawn in at the inlet-orifice and to be discharged at the outletorifice. This natural air-current is kept up continuously for a period of about three hours, during which time the acetificati 011 of theliquor in the shavings is completed,or nearly so. At the end of this period,when the partial or complete acetification of the liquor in the shavings has taken place, the air inlet and outlet orifices are again closed and the generator is turned quickly once around its axis, so as to cause the upper part of the shavings to pass rapidly through the liquor to be acetified,whereby the acetified liquor contained in the shavings is extracted and replaced by a charge of fresh liquor. Then the resaturation of the upper part of the shavings is thus effected in the generator, fermentation again sets in and establishes a natural air-current through the shavings until the complete acetification of the liquor in the shavings is obtained, when the generator is rolled again, and so on until the whole charge of liquor is acetified. The

: vinegar thus formed is then withdrawn and a fresh charge of liquor introduced into the generator.

.It is essential to the continuous operation of the process that the resaturation of the unsubmerged shavings be effected before they become cooled, after acetifieation or partial acetification of the liquor contained therein, and that in effecting said resaturation they be passed quickly through the body of liquor to be acetified, so that the temperature of the shavings will not be reduced to such a degree as to cause an entire interruption of fermentation. It is thereby possible to reestablish the air-current quickly in a diagonal and upward direction through the aeetifying material, and expose, by the permeation of the air through the entire unsubmerged body of shavings, the liquor contained therein more completely and effectively to the oxidizing action of the aircurrent, .so that the process of acetification of the liquor in the shavings is considerably accelerated.

By referring to the drawings, A represents a cask or barrel, of any desired dimensions, which is used as a generator. This cask is entirely filled with shavings, and provided at the center of the front head B with the airinlet orifice a,and with the airoutlet orifice a, that is arranged preferablynear the rear head B of the cask, at or near the highest point of the same, so that the air is compelled to take a diagonal upward course in passing through the shavings. The cask is provided with a discharge-faucet, b, at the lower part,for drawing off the vinegar, it being preferably charged through the air-inlet orifice by means of a funnel and curved tube, but not through the top orifice, as this would destroy the micodermaz aceti generated in the upper portion of the shavings. The generator may be further provided with a thermometer to indicate the ternperature at the interior of the upper part of the cask, and with a gageto indicate the level of the liquid to be acetified, which features, however,

are not shown in the drawings, as they form no essential part of this application. 1 The generator is supported either on beveled rollers O, which are operated by a crank-shaft or other suitable mechanism, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, or simply on wooden rails D, which are beveled at the top, so as to correspond to the shape of the generator and facilitate the turning or rolling of the same, as required in carrying out my improved process. The front head B is provided, back of the inlet-orifice a, with a perforated distributing-chamber, d, that extends transversely across the inner side of the head B, and by which the air is distributed, so as to be passed uniformly through the entire body of shavings in the upper part of the generator.

In place of the mechanism shown, any other mechanism may be used by which the process may be successfully performed.

The operation of saturating the shavings is repeated about every three hours until the whole body of liquor is converted into vinegar, which generally requires from twelve to fifteen days, according to the percentage of alcoholusedfortheliquortobeacetified. \Vhen the complete acetification of the charge of liquor has taken place, the vinegar is drawn off at the faucet at the lower part, and a new charge of liquor is supplied to the generator.

I am aware that, in the manufacture of vinegar, rolling generators, filled with shavings and provided with means for introducing air to the saturated shavings, have been used heretofore-as, for instance, in the rolling generator of Lacambre, in which the air is supplied through a perforated tube, open at the ends, which passes from the center of one head to the center of the opposite head of the generator; but the air-supply in this apparatus was not sufficient to produce a quick and cffective fermentation and acctification, and the I 'half of each head, mainly near the chine, has

been proposed as an acetifying device when filled with shavings, and partially filled with a liquor to be acetified. In that case the air enters through the end holes and escapes through the bung-hole, the result of which operation is that the larger quantity of air entering near the top of the mass of shavings necessarily passes out through the bung without producing much effect upon said mass, other than to rapidly carry away the vapor and the heat produced by fermentation, thereby causing much loss of alcohol 'or aldehyde, and preventing rapid fermentation and acetification.

The essential features of my invention, as

contradistinguished from the processes re ferred to, are, first, that in my process a natural continuous current of air, regulated by and varying with the varying temperature of the saturated acetifying material, passes slowly through said material from end to end diagonally upward, permeating the mass, and tending to maintain the proper temperature for a rapid fermentation and acetilication, While avoiding a rapid evaporation, and consequent waste of alcohol or aldehyde; and, secondly, that the passage of the acetifying material through the liquor takes place rapidly and at short intervals, so that the temperature of said material is not reduced by this step to such a degree as to' cause total interruption of fermentation.

Having thus described myinvention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- Th e process of manufacturin g vinegar, which consists of the following successive steps: First, saturating the acetifying material with a portion of the liquor to be acetified; secondly, removing the saturated acetifying material from the main body of liquor to be acetified thirdly, permitting the liquor in said saturated acetifying material to be oxidized for a given period, as described; fourthly, passing the acetifying material quickly through the main body of the liquor to be acetified, and periodically repeating the foregoing steps until the whole charge of liquor is acetified, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

vroron' MICHAELIS.

Witnesses:

T. CASTER, Y. BAOKES. 

